One of the most anticipated games of 2024, Star Wars Outlaws, was featured prominently during yesterday's Ubisoft Forward event. Fans got an extended new look at protagonist Kay Vess in action.
Today, we've got an exclusive interview straight from Summer Game Fest 2024 with Ubisoft Massive's Navid Khavari (narrative director) and Mathias Karlson (game director alongside Julian Gerighty), who shared some juicy new details about Star Wars Outlaws.
As a reminder, the game is slated to launch on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X on August 30. You can read all about the various editions in our roundup article.
When did your team first get the idea for an open world action adventure Star Wars game themed around the Underworld?
Mathias Karlson: Good question. I think what we can say is that we started our conversations with the team at Lucasfilm Games sometime in 2021. I think it's a game that felt so natural. It was in us, like as kids growing up with this trinity, specifically that era we're in between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
And getting even the notion that we might be making a game in Star Wars, and then finally ending up with Lucasfilm themselves saying, you know what? With a scoundrel game in the underworld, we think you fit in right in between these two movies. It was just a really cool day.
Navid Khavari: I think there's also an expertise within Ubisoft Massive in terms of the open-world gameplay, design, and world-building that you've seen in previous games, so it was just a natural fit. We always talked about the idea of stepping into Star Wars. That's something we've always wanted to do, and we're looking to realize that.
What was it like developing a game of this caliber right under the pandemic for the first year and a half or so?
Mathias Karlson: I mean, it was, of course, new to everyone. I think we quickly adapted. I think any endeavor if you're armed with a really, really clear idea of what you want to achieve, and you have a great team, and in our case also fantastic collaborators in Lucasfilm Games, and we were all, from day one, just pulling in the same direction. We quickly got into a new groove and just kept going.
Now, Kay Vess certainly looks great. However, some Star Wars fans are a bit disappointed as they would have liked an alien protagonist for once. Was that ever a consideration before settling on Kay?
Navid Khavari: No, I don't think so. We knew very early on that we wanted to set ourselves within a scoundrel and truly Kay, and I should say Kay and Nyx, kind of organically came from that. Their dynamic duo, with Kay being a scoundrel from Canto Bight growing up on the streets as a thief and then having this companion, Nyx, who is a brand new species, a brand new creature that is a meal with sort of a mysterious history. It came about really, really organically.
Can fans expect to see characters from other Star Wars, such as games, movies, and TV shows, appearing in Star Wars Outlaws?
Navid Khavari: Yeah, definitely. I think you'll have to wait a little bit, until August 30 (the launch date), to see them all. But you've seen Jabba, you've seen Kira, which was just an unbelievable thing to be able to have in our game. And we recently announced Lando. He's very fun to play Sabacc with. So, I think there's a lot of fun stuff coming in that regard. Honestly, I think if I got into the Easter eggs, your 15-minute interview would be over, so we shall leave some secrets for the launch.
As a quick follow-up, is the expanded universe off-limits for Star Wars Outlaws?
Navid Khavari: I think I'm not going to answer that one. Sorry!
Can you guys discuss Toshara, the new planet you've created in collaboration with Lucasfilm?
Mathias Karlson: Sure. We were going to make a new planet, right? That's pretty cool. Of course, your mind starts racing, and we ended up with something that's very inspired by the savannas of Africa. We even had a part of the team going down there for a research trip. I think something that we found really inspiring was to couple that with something that's very Star Wars inspired just to have a very distinct vibe.
There's a very clear profile. All of Tatooine is desert, and Toshara is windswept on top of this savannah. And the combination of these almost amber-like mountainous structures and the wind that's just been eroding this place for many, many, many years felt very distinct. It felt like something you've never seen before. Definitely not in Star Wars. And then, of course, it's filled with new lore.
Navid Khavari: We were really excited about this idea of a planet in the Outer Rim that the underworld sort of finds as a nexus, right? When Kay arrives on Toshara, what was really fun is that her as a rookie having to navigate the Underworld within it is, I think, going to be incredibly satisfying.
There is a whole range of characters that you're going to meet, but also just the feeling of zipping around on your speeder on the Tosharan savannah. Nothing really beats it. Lucasfilm really was very generous. I think they put a lot of trust in us to try and bring something new and interesting to the table. When you get on Toshara, the first stop is usually the cantina. You get to meet the locals and understand the dynamics of the characters there. I think it really fits into the underworld fantasy.
Will players be able to see the aftermath of the Battle of Hoth firsthand?
No comment on that one!
Okay. I had to try! Can you tell me how many planets players can visit in Star Wars Outlaws?
Navid Khavari: Absolutely, yeah. We have five planets in Star Wars Outlaws. We have Canto Bight, which you might recognize from The Last Jedi. Toshara, which is our brand new planet - or sorry, brand new moon I should say - in the Outer Rim. And then, of course, we have Kijimi, the snow-swept planet that you might recognize from Rise of Skywalker. That is particularly exciting because it's ruled by a new syndicate we're bringing to the table called the Ashita Clan, which is this Melitto species with a hive-like hierarchical structure of control.
Then we have Akiva, which fans of Star Wars will know was featured in the book. It's the first time we're gonna actually be able to see and explore this jungle planet. And then, of course, there's Tatooine, which was just incredibly exciting to bring to life.
Mathias Karlson: I think something we're very proud of in this game is being able to offer all of these different locations so seamlessly stitched together in what truly feels like one big slice of the galaxy. Being able to go to your speeder and drive it into your ship, literally take off and hyper-drive wherever you want at your own fingertips and land and then drive out again. I think people will really, really like it.
How large of an open world should players expect when landing on the planets?
Mathias Karlson: It's sizable. It's different from planet to planet. It hasn't been an exercise for us that's metrics driven in the sense that we're going for size as a primary motivator when thinking about, okay, how do we bring this planet to life? It will vary. It's definitely truly open world with a contiguous feeling to it. You can blast your speeder for minutes. But at the end of the day, it is about being truthful to the source. Or in our case, also some new stuff. And to fit it with things that are interesting. If there's something on the horizon that piques your interest, you can actually drive over there and have a look and you will stumble into some adventure.
In addition to the speeder, will it be possible for Kay to ride animals as well?
Mathias Karlson: We'll have to wait and see, but the speeder is her primary travel method—her steel horse, if you will.
I want to kind of shift gears over to the Wanted and reputation systems. If your reputation with a certain faction drops too low, is there still a way to repair that relationship and avoid, you know, being shot on-site by their operatives?
Mathias Karlson: 100%. So, really central to our philosophy around the reputation system is that Kay is not a character that is about allying with a cause or allegiance and things like this. It's a very free-spirited person who is seeking ultimate freedom for her life. But for you as a player, this very naturally translates into the fact that you're the one navigating this world.
It's about, you know, rolling with the punches and really playing the underworld. You will have means to get back, and at the end of the day, I think you'll come to find that it's more about what you're after than what they can get out of you. You're gonna grow increasingly into the driver's seat, so to say, and how to interact with it.
Navid Khavari: Yeah, exactly, and I think that's very true to Star Wars as well, you know. I like to say that Han, even by Empire, always believed that he could actually pay off his debt to Jabba. And I think it's the same with Kay, right? If you're useful at the right time, you can turn the tide of opinion of someone like Jabba or Kira.
Makes sense. In one of the three demos I played today I did experience that you can essentially pay off a corrupt empire official and reduce Kay's wanted level. Can she also take contracts directly from empire officials?
Mathias Karlson: Mhm.....Can't share. But I think we can share that contracts are one very player-agency-centric part of the game where you have the opportunity to say, okay, I'm on the low side with this syndicate right now. I want to push it up. Or if you really want to enjoy the fruits of being in an excellent reputation end the scale, taking jobs and contracts for the different syndicates is something you can do.
Looking at the Trailblazer ship, can Kay Vess customize it aesthetically and/or functionally in any way?
Mathias Karlson: So, in general, progressing and evolving and growing is really I think central to both the narrative and the game itself. Upgrading your abilities with Nyx. Him being able to do even more things for you. Your blaster, your speeder, your ship, you saw that Kay was maybe putting on a different jacket when you played in Kijimi.
That is a very player-centric choice, and these different gear pieces and clothing pieces also have gameplay effects on them. So, there's a lot to look forward to when it comes to both visual and gameplay customization.
Okay, so does that include customizing the ship as well, then?
Mathias Karlson: Yes.
Alright. What percentage of the game will be comprised of space exploration or combat?
Mathias Karlson: That's really up to you at the end of the day. When we think of Star Wars Outlaws as an open-world experience, space is just a natural part of the Star Wars world as a planet's surface.
So you are at all times free to take off into space and explore that region, jump wherever you want on and around the planets in our game. Both the story, the main campaign, which is the thrust through this game, and the contracts, etc. will also take you to space if you don't go there just on your own accord.
Navid Khavari: Yeah, and we've described it as the story is kind of an engine. Kay's journey is an engine of pursuit through the different planets and the regions, but there's nothing stopping you from, you know, taking on the contract in space or taking on the dogfight, so I think as Mathias said, it's really how much time do you want to spend in space.
Can you revisit planets whenever you want?
Yes. At the end of the day, there's a lot of freedom in the hands of you as a player in that you can revisit or play these planets in the order you like.
What sort of game length are you targeting for Star Wars Outlaws?
It's a full-bodied single-player action-adventure experience that is very scalable with how much time you invest into exploring the world that we prepared for you. So, I'd say it at least doubles the duration of playing just the campaign part if you engage with everything else.
How much time can you spend with Sabacc?
As much as you ask for. And I will tell you I've spent hours playing Sabacc just on its own and it was a blast. The team's done an excellent job of creating it.
Thank you two so very much for your time.
